The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies 1 (Rough Guide Reference) [Paperback]

Rough Guides (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rough Guide Reference | Publication Date: October 17, 2005

The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies uncovers cinema''s funniest and most varied genre, from silent slapstick, to 90s gross-out and the dark indie humour of today. The canon of fifty greatest funnies runs from The Gold Rush and Duck Soup to Airplane and Shaun of the Dead, plus double-acts, drag-acts and ensembles from Laurel & Hardy and the Marx Bros, to the Pythons and the Coen Brothers. Seeking out the films that have amused people the most - or simply amused the most people - the Rough Guide gives you the ultimate lowdown on laughter in the movies from Wes Anderson''s Rushmore to Withnail and I, and from John Belushi to Billy Wilder.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bob McCabe is a critic, broadcaster, film journalist and screenwriter. He has written books on Ronnie Barker, the official, definitive and authorised history of all things Python, and has appeared on numerous TV comedy documentries.

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Rough Guides (October 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1843534649
• ISBN-13: 978-1843534648
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 6.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,510,106 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Enjoyable Read, February 6, 2006

By 

James N Simpson (Gold Coast, QLD Australia) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies 1 (Rough Guide Reference) (Paperback)

Not a bad little book, The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies gives heavily opinionated commentary on a heap of movies, actors and the different decades. It is a long way off being a comprehensive list and there are a lot of seriously funny movies and actors not in here. Like with the Rough Guide's travel guides a lot is missing. Where is UHF, the sensational National Lampoons Vacation trilogy and many other classics? It lacks the comprehensive coverage of rival books such as 1001 Movies to Watch Before You Die. However what is covered in here is interesting, will bring back memories and is certainly educational on the realm of comedy movies. It definitely inspires me to go and rent some of older movies I haven't seen for a while and even check out some I had never previously thought of watching.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent (if not very objective) reference, October 1, 2006

By 

mrliteral - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

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This review is from: The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies 1 (Rough Guide Reference) (Paperback)

I suppose an argument can be made for other genres as well, but I've always thought the comedy film doesn't get the respect it deserves. For examples, when they're handing out Oscars, comedies rarely get Best Picture; the last one to win was Shakespeare in Love, and even that was an atypical comedy because it was also a period piece. I think the last straight comedy to win was Annie Hall nearly three decades ago. This is in spite of the fact that comedy is often tougher to do than drama; after all, when a dramatic moment doesn't work, it may not even be noticed, but when humor fails, it is not only evident but almost painful to watch.

The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies is a passable reference book on the comedies that succeeded and a few that didn't do quite as well. As with the other "Rough" movie guides, it is broken into certain sections: a history of film comedies, the "canon" of the 50 great comedies, a look at certain icons of the field, a discussion of international comedies and a guide to other sources of information.

Of course, a book like this is largely a matter of opinion, so one should not consider this a completely objective source. No where is this more evident than author Bob McCabe's choice of the canon. While certain choices are ones that would make most lists, like Airplane, Blazing Saddles or Some Like It Hot, others are a little more dubious. For example, I enjoyed Dodgeball and Shaun of the Dead, but I don't know if they are among the top 50 of all time.

While the opinions in this book will differ from yours (or mine), they do provoke a deeper look at genre. In addition to the canon films, there are many other films referenced, usually favorably, so this book can offer a lot of ideas for movies to watch. As stated before, as a reference source, this book is merely passable, but it is a good introduction that can point you to a few good movies and some better sources of information.

4.0 out of 5 stars Actually rather good, October 5, 2010

By 

Magic Lemur (Somewhere in Madagascar) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies 1 (Rough Guide Reference) (Paperback)

I've just been in my local pub and thought I'd give this book a read. It was actually surprisingly good and was pretty much what it said on the tin.

If I recall correctly, there is a section on 'Comedy Greats', one on the '50 Greatest Comedy films ever' and a final section on foreign comedy films from around-the-World.

There were sections on Dan Ackroyd, Monty Python (naturally!), Charlie Chaplin and Steve Martin and the book seemed to cover all manner of comedies from Bringing Up Baby, through Ferris Bueller's Day Off to the modern classic Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. I also got the impression that the writer was really engaged with his subject and really knew his films, enough to recommend the lesser known films by great comic actors, etc.

I have two criticisms though.
First, is that the foreign films section was a little boring & I didn't recognise a single one.
Second is that there was a lot of repeated material. As the two main sections overlap, often there would be a film in the top 50 (e.g. Monty Python's Life Of Brian) and then a whole section on the comedic group/ comedian (in this example 'Monty Python'). I got the impression with comic actor Robin Williams that the two sections were very similar & that the review of Good Morning, Vietnam had similar content to the main article.

Still, as a 'rough guide' and a quick read, I found it entertaining & well-written. I actually bought the copy that is now in the pub & feel that it was a good purchase and that it fits the category of 'coffee-table reads that aren't too stretching'.